The Dallas daily herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1887, 1887-01-28
VALUABLE GOVERNMENT BOOKS.
A Patent Attorney Talks About Some
Much Coveted Documents.

a Patent Attorney Talks About Some
Much Coveted Documents.
"An author who gets S., 900 from a
single book usually considers himself
pretty well paid, does he not?" queried
u well-known patent attorney Of re-
porter. The latter hungrily murmured
Yes" and fell into deep, four-dmen-
sional revery of Il contemplated book of
his own. "And you will acknowledge
that most government publications are
valued by the pound Junk shop measure
mentp" insinuated the attorney. "Yes?
Well, there are ten books in the United
States patent office for the absolute
and unconditional possession Of which
would cheerfully hand over my certified
check tor $50 000-S5, 600 apiece. They
are still in manuscript, and probably
will not be printed-not right away"
The reporter woke up and listened.
Those books are the letter books
containing the names and addresses of
inventors, with the titles of inventions,
whose cases have been rejected during
the past ten years.
''ro commence Mt the beginning, there
has been an average of %, 900 cases filed
in the patent office every year for the
last ten years, and yearly average of
$4,000 patents granted. Last year there
were $1,000 applications filed and a.
900 patents issued, an unusual number.
On this showing something like 60.per
cent. of the applications have gone to
patent. So there have been during the
last ten years about 100000 rejected
cases. These in part include cases de-
feated in interferences and applications
allowed, but on which final fees have
not been paid. because the inventions
proved imperative or for some similar
reason. OF this latter class there were
Z 500 in 1885.
'Now, good attorneys get fully 81
per cent. of their cases allowed and
patent ted hence there must be some
reason for only GO per cent. Of the APP
plications being allowed The reason
is this: Fully 5000 inventors every year
make out their cases and try to get
them through the patent Office. Not
knowing the routine they almost inva-
rlably get involved in the mcshes of red
tape and procedure and fall by the way.
The difficulty may be very slight, mere
formality, defective drawing, an i'm
properly -worded application, an inde6-
nate specification. a slight interference,
or a few needed amendments, which
regular patent attorney could overcome
in half hour, but to the inventor
proves an unsurmountable obstacle, his
application is rejected, and he gives up
in disgust or despair.
Ceases filed in the patent Office go
first to the twenty-eight principal ex-
aminers, recording TO the subject mat
ter. If they are rejected for any reason
two years are allowed in which TO
amend them or take other necessary ac-
ton. II no action has been taken at
the end Of two years such cases are
technically treated rs abandoned and
are sent TO the craftsman division
where they are entered in the books of
which have made mention, and there
remain. Fully fifty thousand of these
rejected cases of ten years fall under
these conditions. At low estimate,
twenty-five thousand. of these rejected
cases put in the hands OF competent
attorney could be patented. A patent
attorneys fees on such conditional cases
would be about $50 per casa gross
sum of "a, 250,O00. Count out dead, de
funct, disgusted, and dead-broke in
ventors, still an enormous number
would get out patents il they knew how.
But the trouble is just here-no one out
side the patent Office is allowed access
to these file books. As said before, il
/ could have the sole privilege of over
hauling them. l would give $50, 900 and
then clear $500, 900 Then. again.
there are some fifteen thousand cases
now lying in the examiners rooms
awaiting the two-year limit. These are
still more valuable, as II they are tax
en- up before the time limit expire, the
initial fees do not lapse, while in the
other cases they would have to be re
paid.
This action Of the Office was not al
ways thus. When NJ. ID. Leggett was
for a period OF about a
year, attorneys were allowed access to
all letter books, and previous TO that
had been allowed access to the files Of
abandoned cases, but there was con-
slant scrabble and not infrequently |
fights over them, and about |
1875 tho Office made them secret ~
H-oalfs,1fo1 Docf